Chapter 4: Archer's First night
(Ost Opening ougon no Kagayaki )
Same day an hour after Ashura returned from school to head into the digital world
After a late night at school, the mysterious young high schooler Mavis started to get ready to leave at a later point.
Shes the type that ends to leave after everyone else does. No one knows why she does it and some do not care.
Ever since she obtained the archer digimon known only to her as baalmon, she solely focused on her tactics and strategy...sometimes stressing if she could wind this competition.
She gets her bag puts on a coat and prepares to walk out the door.
Each time she steps out the door of any room, she gets the feeling that she may lose her life
Later
At the school gate,
"Well I should give Archer a call to tell him I'm arriving soon..." she said as she thought about hin "...that he'd care" she said as she puffed her cheeks
She then noticed a small boy walking to her way. He caught her attention easily with that hair of his
(interesting hair style)
It is a small boy possibly in grade school, with black hair spikey on the end like a ducktail, while shape banes at the front of his onyx colored eyes. Wearing a black longsleeved shirt with beige colored shorts and white shoes holding a bag and clocery list.
When he looked at her, he stopped to look at her hair, so curly its freaking him out, yet it looks like a soothing wave.
"Uh hello little guy" she broke the silence
He broke out of his stupor and blushed in embarrassment
He shock it off and spoke" Umm... hello miss, do you know where to find the shinjuku district?"
"Oh why are heading there" she said even though it's not here business
"Ooh it's just it's my first errand to go grocery shopping by myself" he said as he looked away from her
"This late though?"
"My mother sometimes forgets to purchase the ingredients and asks my big brother to do it, but he's at a sleepover so this is my chance to be useful to her" he said with a determined face.
"That's so generous to help your mother so" she said with a bright gentle smile
"Uh y-yeah" he said embarrassed about it "I should go on"
"See you...by the way I'm Mavis! What's your name?" She said as she shouted to reach his eyes as he ran a bit
The little boy stopped and smiled a bit "It's Sasuke farewell! " he shouted with his hands to his mouth and then ran
(Such a nice boy, hope her mother raises her right) she said as she walked her home to meet archer
Though unknown to either of them, the boys bag had carried an giant egg...
an hour later night time
She starts to change into her casual outfit with the short dress
"I was wondering when you were getting ready?" Said a familiar voice
She turns to see her archer digimon leaning by her mirror
She turned away and was redoing her hair into pigtails "I was simply waiting for you to appear,
Are you ready to go?"
"Hn...do you even need to ask?" He said
Despite there past meeting, she still has to tolerate his attitude until the grail could reach to them
She then opens a portal with her seal coated phone and two start to walk through the swirling vortex.
To a school at dusk time
"Why are we at the school yard?"
"Oh" she said in a mock tone" You must be very bored to ask a question you already know the answer too." She said sarcasticly
"Yeah yeah, here just here because You sense magical disturbance through your phone." He said while waving his hand non chalantly
Digital world
The two walk out of the portal and end up an a small village area. Where night based digimon walk as the casual daytime digimon tend to stay indoors at night.
"Is this where the our opponent may be?" Said the girl
"For a smart girl, you sure ask stupid questions" said the digimon as his partner looked ticked at his remark
She looks around the small village sized buildings but noticed two things, one was that the digimon around here seem to be in a hurry and the second occurance was that her phone senses no magic being used
"Well if your done acting like the thinker, I'm going to check a few buildings on my own." he says as he turns away from her "hope you don't mind" the archer said with a smile
"Wait!, what if out enemy..."
"I'll be there don't you worry your big head" he said as he warped away
"MMMUUUH ... someone should teach you manners?" Said the blond as she watched him go. But before she walked away, she unconsciously feels her head and realized his words and got mad and stomped away.
(My heads not that large...) she said in an embarrassed face and shook her head and started to explore the village.
The started to snoop through the small houses by looking at the windows.
Next, she used her phone to track digital energy at backyards and later house roofs.
She later later started scanning the local digimon through a long distance scan so other digimon won't think she's some stalker. Because she's got too much on her plate right now.
As she walked further into town she noticed a building bigger then the other houses
(must be either a courthouse or town hall, or if any luck a library. Regardless, I know where to check up next) she thought as she started to walk towards the building
She walked to the front door to see if anyone was there as she checked her phone for any live active data, the phone said no life, so she decided to take out a bobbypin and picklock to door open.
Click
She hears the door unlock and opens it as she enters inside.
Inside town hall
Looks like she was right about it being town hall
She started her search in the briefing room
"Nothing"
She later checked the basement
"Nothing"
She checked the main office
"Still nothing"
Later
After she walked out of a hall, and bought and energy bar from a nearby vending machine she decided to stop and think
(The only places I have not seen yet would be the library and the roof they seem more logical to be for a suspicious digimon to be at though but in all honesty it's just typical )
She finishes her bar and heads to the library
Eventually
She enters the room of books and turns to turn on her phone again (Jeez if I'm not careful, I could run out of juice then how am I going to get home?) She thought in slight worry
-Beep-
-Beep-
"HM!"
She notices that her phone senses a some data at the shelfs
"He or she's been here, but obviously left most likely an hour ago depending on the essence left here"
(I'll have to hurry to I want to catch up to the perpetrator.)
Town hall roof
She soon makes it to the roof of the 's dark outside. It's eight o'clock now, way past the school closing time which is six.
The only people still in the area are herself and Archer.
Her phone starts to beep a bit more loudly as she saw a rune on the ground
(―――So, this makes seven. Well, it looks like this is the origin." ) she thought that gives her the thought that she is getting closer to finding the spirit and maybe it's master
She then senses her Archer's presence but he is still hiding. But she notices something else, she realized when she first went into the building she felt a bit of her energy slipping but nothing too serious.
"So this is one of the boundary fields I've heard about
(boundary fields are traps by masters to steal energy from random people inside it. And by Archer's silence he knew abd probably went to take care of most of them, which leaves this rune on the roof)
"You know, if things go south I hear a master can make his digimon get stronger by consuming souls from others." He suggested
"What?" She suddenly stood up
Sure she's heard of such things about some digimon but didn't believe he would mention it as she put her finger on her lip. He bluntly told her that she should kill people or digimon to get some strength
" Would you consider that decision" he said
For her answer...
"Don't ask me about such a ridiculous question." Mavis replied "It's not my style and it sounds troublesome so don't ask me that again."
Satisfied with her answer he said. "Heh, just a thought."
She walks to the rune " well this rune seems unnecessary I should get rid of it" she said as she used her phone and started chanting to get rid of the field.
"Abzug. Bedienung Mittelstand." She chanted
Eliminate. Surgical extraction, second section.
She touches the ground with her left hand and lets magical energy flow out.
"What, you're going to erase it? What a waste." Said an unknown voice
(fate ost nightmare)
Suddenly. She turned her head to see who said that
As if to stop the erasure of the boundary field, a voice echoes over.
"――――!"
She quickly stand up and turn around.
On top of the water tower.
In the sky ten meters away, a digimon is looking down at me.
A tall white like centaur that blinds with the white stars into the night.
His eyesmile is wild and a bestial smell carries on the wind. ...The stare of the beast is a cool one.
He looks at her like an old friend, even in this situation―――
"―――Is this your doing?" She said
"Nope. Petty tricks are the magi's job. We only fight as we are commanded to. Isn't that right, you over there?" He said as he points at a empty which happens to be Archer's spot
"As I thought, a Servant...!"
"That's right. Since you can tell, I can consider you as my enemy, right?" The digimon said
"―――――" she stood in silence As her spine freezes for a second byt her instincts kicked back in
"Well it's obvious your the enemy so...," he jumps
He takes a big leap And lands fast to crush the jumps to the side without thinking.
A whirlwind brushes past her hair. She barely made it.
He rushed her in an eyeblink and mercilessly slashed at the space I just occupied.
"Hah, you've got some good legs, young lady...!" He says as he charges again
There are no escapes.
The fence corners her. She summons her phone as casts a spell
The Magic Crest on her device and glows assemble the magic in a single measure.
It lightens my body and adjusts gravity.
Suddenly glowing golden and green veins surround her slim legs
In this instant, her body becomes light as a feather, and she leap――――
"Mavis...!" Archer shouts
"I know, let me handle it...!" She reassures him
"Vernier! ArmsxLegs!"
She jump over the fence and fall from the rooftop leaving a glowing trail of a yellow neon and pixie dust. Like she was peter pan...gliding in style
The wind and pressure push against her body.
(Fifteen meters to the ground, 1.7 seconds until landing...o, that's too slow. He'll catch up...!) She thought as she sees the enemy start the chase
Archer, take care of the landing...!"
"――――Hah――――!"
The Archer take the impact of the landing and start to run as soon as my feet touch the ground.
―――First, I have to change the location.
She knew they have to go somewhere they can move around freely, not a small place like a rooftop.
(We have to move to a large field with no obstacles) she thought
"Hah, hah...!"
She runs from the rooftop to the near outskirts of the valley in less than seven seconds.
It's more than a hundred meters. My speed is so fast that normal people would see only a blur.
But that's...
"Man, those are really good legs. It'll be a waste to kill you here."
...Meaningless against a Servant.
"Archer――――!" She shouts
At the moment she steps back, Archer steps in front, taking form.A cloudy Archer's hand is a shortsword white key like blade that reflects the weak moonlight. While a black version of the blade forms in his other hand.
(ost end)
(Fate ost Clashing Souls)
"―――Wow."
The man crooks his mouth.
"...That's good. That's the way to go. I don't mind people who are quick on the uptake."
A large whirlwind.
...That's the weapon swung at me on the rooftop... the giant lance that tried to mercilessly slaughter me―――
"Servant... Lancer――――"
"That's right. And your Servant is Saber"but then he had a closer look at him..."Or maybe not. Who the hell are you?"
There's no sign of his previous casual response to Lancer, full of murderous intent, Archer remains silent.
...The distance between the two is about five weapon in Lancer's hand is about two meters.
"...Heh. You're not the type to engage in one-on-one combat. So you must be Archer." The enemy said
Archer doesn't respond to the sneering voice two counterfeit colored knights are already watching for the other's clinching blow.
"...All right. I don't like it, but now we've met, we'll just have to fight. Come on, take out your bow, Archer.
"I have some manners, so I'll at least wait for that." He says But the Archer does not respond.
"There's nothing to say to an enemy he ͭust defeat." Archer says
That steel back of his seems to declare so.
That made Mavis realize.(...I'm being stupid. Archer is just waiting for my word, my command.) She thought
"Archer, Show me your powers here." She said
"Heh." She heard the enemy laugh a bit
He grins as if to answer my words, and the white knight dashes forward Shortsword in hand, the enemy launches.
"――――You fool!"
What meets him is a blue the dashing Archer is a raging wind, the responding spearhead is a divine sword is swung, a swing to deflect the parries the thrust of the high speed lance with his shortsword.
"...!"
The one in red stops.
The enemy did not permit Archer's enemy doesn't even let him get within two meters, the range of the spear. For a long weapon, distance is always preferred.
As Lancer has a weapon almost two meters long, he only needs to attack when the enemy comes into his at an approaching enemy is easier than moving out yourself.
But even so. Lancer closes the distance himself and doesn't even allow Archer to move forward.
"Idiot, a mere bowman challenging a close-range fight――――!"
Lancer closes in with each blow, with no thought of a long weapon, it's suicidal to close in to an enemy. The spearman's tactic is to use their long range to defeat the enemy and win the Lancer is just advancing unchecked, he doesn't have a chance of winning.
"――――No way." She said
Lancer's lance shows no vulnerabilities as it strikes for the throat, shoulders, forehead, and heart. Thrusts so fast even the afterimages are blurred. Each strike of his lance repels, rebuffs, and pushes back Archer, any one of his thrusts could be called a final blow. But even as a bowman, Archer is a Servant.
No ordinary attack can be a final blow...!
"Ha――――!" The lancer thrusts with his spear
Archer did just then, hitting the shaft of the approaching lance to redirect it slightly creates an opening.
It must be because he underestimated a bowman.
The advantage of a long weapon is in the length and freedom of its range. Once Lancer has discarded these advantages himself, his defeat is――――
"Huh――――!?"
The archer stops
―――A nightmare like time is reversing. The thrust is faster than the previous ones...!
"Guh―――!" The sound came from the archer
Archer tries to parry the blow, but he gets flicked away along with his weapon. There are no openings in Lancer's attack. No, not just that. The thrusts increase in speed and power without limit and it becomes a final blow even for a Servant...!
Archer manages to retreat a bit and parries. And as a result, the distance between them opens a little.
That uses that distance as a runway to launch an even more powerful attack.
The raging continuous attack is only a repetition of that.
But the blows themselves are godlike.
Ten blows already. No, it must actually be many times more than that. The heavy rain of lance pours with yet more strength, trying to skewer Archer to death.
...It's not fast, but it's just skill.
It thrusts like a waterfall, with no change in speed. What can Archer do as he's now on the defensive?
With such a short sword, he can only parry the lance. He has no way to close on Lancer, and he continues to retreat.
The shortsword that deflected Lancer's lance flies from Archer's hand. This is Lancer's technique. A straight thrust that turns into a sweep at Archer's wrist. It was a blow Archer could not avoid even had he seen it coming. There is no effective way of parrying a lance with a sword. A strong rebuff only results in a stronger counterattack, and a weak rebuff does not create any openings.
There's no hesitation in Lancer. His movement to push Archer back stops. ―――He must intend to end the match in a single instant. The stares of the firmly placed Lancer and the swordless Archer clash.
The lancer steps back as the archer speaks
"What's wrong, Lancer? It's not like you to just stand there and watch. Where's the energy you had just now?" He says
"...You're talking crap, you cheater." Lancer says as his irritation is understandable.
Even though Lancer fought as a spearman, Archer fended him off as a swordsman.
Which means, Archer hasn't shown any of his abilities yet. So it's natural for Lancer to feel ghastly.
"...All right then, I'll ask you. What hero are you? I've never heard of a bowman using two swords." He said
"On the other hand, it's easy to tell who you are. It's said that only the fastest heroes are chosen as the lancer, but you surpass even that. There aren't three lancers in this world at your level. And on top of that, there's only one with such beast-like agility." The archer deduced
"―――Oh. Well said, Archer."
At that instant. His vast murderous intent makes me forget to breathe. Lancer's arm moves.
This is different from before. As the spearhead is lowered as if to strike the ground, and only his stare pierces Archer
"―――In that case, you shall face my finishing blow."
"I won't stop you. You're an enemy I will have to defeat sooner or later." The archer said
Suddenly the battle is interrupted by a snap
Mavis looks to see the source of the sound and sees a far away silluotte
(A male... a human here?!) She thought but as she took a closer as she squinted her eyes, she could see that the person looked familiar.
She heard the lancer scoff runs to his locationShe gasps in shock and turns to her partner
"ARCHER GO AFTER HIM!" She shouts in panic
" Right" he said as he speeds to them as Mavis tries her best to follow
Forest later
She is still running to the source hoping to save the stranger
(Damn, how stupid of me...!) She thought
(I curse my carelessness. It's the rule of magi to eliminate any witnesses. Which is why, if one didn't want to do that, one just had to allow no witnesses. I've done that until now, so why do I have to make a mistake today of all days...!? )
She arrives and finds archer but the lancer is not around
A night where even the moonlight is obscured.
A human boy wearing a bandana lying on the cold hallway floor and Archer is standing still.
"..." she stares in silent shock
The archer is staring blankly at the student.
...A smell hits her nose. The blood on the floor makes clear that it's the smell of death.
"...Follow him, Archer. Lancer will probably go back to his Master. This won't be worth it unless we at least find out what his Master looks like."
He still reminds silent but he complies as the Archer goes after Lancer.
She is left alone with the bandana headed boy lying on the floor.
(I can't look straight at him. But I must. ) she thought as her hair shadowed her eyes but with those thoughts led to...
This is my fault.
This is my fault.
This is my fault.
She's been preparing for something like this. There's no good or evil for magi. She always told herelf that this road has only her blood and the blood of others, so...!
"...One shot from Lancer's lance, huh? You can't be saved with your heart pierced."
(I don't know how long it's been since Lancer killed him. Was he lucky or unlucky to be pierced through the heart? I guess Lancer's attack isn't a simple external wound as the flow of blood from the rupture isn't too severe. ) she thought
It's not too severe, but it's all over when the brain doesn't get any more blood. (Wait a moment, No, basically, if his heart were pierced, he should have died instantly. )
"...But it's amazing he isn't dead yet." She sighed in relief "...Yes."
But there's still a problem, he is still breathing faintly as if to give his last scream. But that will only last a few more seconds.
He can't heal his own wounds, and she doesn't have enough power to save him either.
She attempts to touch the head, facing the ground, and realize her fingertips are trembling.
She wonders why. She's used to such things.
I've had to make these kinds of choices many times before. I've lost many things due to my mistakes and my selfishness.
"...Sorry. I'll see you off, at least."
She controls her trembling fingers with her will and looks at the face of the character
( fate ost ever present feeling)
A huge smacking sound.
She really feels like she's been hit on the head with a hammer.
(I-Indian boy!) She looked in horror as she saw the same boy from that day
The could see the consequences
"...Stop it. Why does it have to be you?" As she looked directly at his fading face And
She grit her teeth. Trying not to suppress her trembling.
And she started gripping his jacket shaking him in frustration
"Why is it him?
Why did it have to be him?"
She's not mad at Lancer for killing a witness quickly and perfectly, just as a Servant should '
She's just angry at him for staying late at this place, on this day...!
Suddenly the face of a sad Viola flashes in her mind. She will definitely cry.
And she recall one red-tinted day after school, a long time ago.
...A distant sunset.
Someone always running alone. And a boring girl, staring at that from far away. (And before me, the corpse of someone who happened to get involved. ) just then she had an idea.
There is a way.
She instinctively takes out her pendant passed down from the vermillion family
(No, I'll lose my last resort whether I succeed or fail, so the result for me won't change.) She thought
She then looks at him again
It's a fact of his death is already determined.
(It's my fault for not noticing the things around me. But it's his fault for unluckily staying late. ) she thinks as she starts to feel conflict between what to decide
Then her consenceneses kicked the feeling off and kneel in front of the one who will become a corpse in another second.
"...Man, I've done it." Mavis says as she could regret her decision later
The pendant in her hand becomes lighter.
My father's memento is drained almost to emptiness, and falls onto what used to be a dying body.
"――――Well, it can't be helped." She slowly smiles
(I didn't have the power or skills to revive someone with a damaged heart, damaged blood vessels, and on the verge of brain death on top of that. )
"That's why I had to make up for my lack of skill with this powerful object."she now mumbled in a shy expression
Then a bright light flashes around the two
(Ost end)
Outside the forest
It's been about five minutes after she left athe forest and prepares to open a portal back to the human world.
But before she enters the portal...
On her way back, she suddenly remembers
"I left the pendant at valley " As she remembered what happened to it
She then sighs
(It's just a pendant now that the magical energy has been drained out of it.)
"Oh well." She said as she brushed it off...sure it was important but with the energy in it gone, it was useless
The blond girl then enters her home, sits on her sofa, and watches her clock while she waits her archer to come home.